


alphanumeric

by faerietell



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Identity Reveal, texting identity reveal, this is mostly dialogue, wonder woman discussion because why not
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2018-02-18
Packaged: 2019-03-20 15:41:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13720794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/faerietell/pseuds/faerietell
Summary: Chat Noir didn't expect to already have Ladybug's number.





	alphanumeric

Paris is a city of romance, miracles, and an approximate of 2.2 million people. The odds of knowing Chat Noir out of costume is astronomically low, and even if it wasn’t for that, she would know. Ladybug is certain, that if their eyes met, if they passed by each other, she would know. There is no magic strong enough to stop that.

So, she is inclined to give into his latest request.

“C’mon, my lady,” he tells her, after they accost a minor burglar. Neither one of them had to resort to their powers, so they have a little time to linger on the roof – even though the rose-gold of the setting sun is _tick tock_ enough for Ladybug.

“Our identities.” She crosses her arms.

“It’s not like either one of our numbers is in a phonebook,” Chat points out with a wide grin. “It’d be useful. We can contact each other if there’s an Akuma.”

She twists her wrist, the yo-yo spinning in a gentle, controlled arc. “We already have that. You just want to send me memes, don’t you, kitty?”

If possible, his grin only stretches wider. “Guilty.”

Ladybug rolls her eyes but laughs.

“Seriously,” he says a moment later. “Sometimes we get stuck in our civilian identities.” She has to admit that’s true. It’s happen too many times. “Might be useful. Memes aside.”

Ladybug hesitates. Her identity is important to her, but he has a point. Besides, she trusts him not to go looking. He has never betrayed that trust before, even when he had opportunities. Even when they sat in the same three by three squares of space, untransformed, humans and not heroes.

If anything, she wants to give him a little something. She says no more than she likes, and she _hates_ that. Marinette is a girl of ‘yes’. She hesitates, and she fumbles, but she nods and laugh. Ladybug is different. Ladybug is strict, follows the rules, the leader Paris looks to. There is no room for mistakes.

“Fine,” she gives in. “But don’t you dare spam me.”

“No promises.”

Later, when she’s in her room, untransformed, she turns to Tikki. “Did I do the right thing?” She tosses herself onto her bed without waiting for an answer. “Ugh, I shouldn’t have done it, right?”

Tikki floats gently to her shoulder. “It doesn’t matter, Marinette. It’s too late to turn back time now. As far as you know, he might be right. This could be a good thing.”

 

 

Adrien falls back to his bed dramatically, hands on his chest. “I have Ladybug’s number,” he whispers into the air, like the words aloud would make it more tangible. “Her number. _Ladybug_.”

“Yeah, yeah, kid, you’re a real smooth talker,” Plagg hovers. “Now where’s my cheese?”

By now, Adrien is pretty good at ignoring this. Instead, he rolls over on his stomach to scroll through his phone. The Ladyblog already has an update on their most recent heroics. While he would usually read the story in detail, this time he only lingers on the photo of Ladybug.

“Cheese, cheese, cheese.”

She’s in mid-action, wind through that deep blue hair. It’s a profile shot, and he can clearly see the determination in her eyes, the roundness of her cheeks, the muscles in her shoulders. “She’s so perfect.”

“Adrien.”

Plagg disappears from sight, and Adrien abruptly sits up, like he’s been caught at something. “Yes, Natalie?”

His father’s secretary glances over his room quickly, but he knows there’s nothing at fault. His room is neat, sheets folded, and almost clinical to the eye. Just like his father would want. “Just informing you your photoshoot tomorrow has been rescheduled for Friday.”

Adrien keeps his face composed. “Alright. Thanks for letting me know.”

She gives him a stiff nod and leaves.

When she’s gone, he allows himself a little fist pump.

“Where’s the _cheese_?”

“Ugh, fine,” he gives in. He reaches over to the drawer and tosses him a hunk of it. Plagg easily catches it. “Do you know how much I hate smelling like this stuff?”

“Don’t know, don’t care,” the kwami replies, all glee.

Adrien already has her number memorized, but it’s different punching it into his phone. He hesitates on the contact name. Ladybug is too obvious. Maybe just Lady? Yes.

But when he goes to save it, his phone alerts him that he already has a contact under that name. “What?” Plagg only continues to eat, ignorant to the rush of Adrien’s blood, the thudding of his heart.

He scrolls down.

 _Marinette Dupain-Cheng_.

 

 

“I don’t think it was that good.”

“Not _that good_?” Alya throws her arms up. “It. Was. A piece of feminist mastermind. The film of the fucking century. What is _good_ to you?”

Marinette drapes an arm around her friend’s shoulder. “Alya, he gets to have his own opinion. Even if it’s wrong. Completely wrong.”

“Look, all I’m saying is the villain and parts of the plotline was weak. Like, Ares? What the hell was up with that?” Nino crosses his arms, but he takes a little step back from the full force of Alya’s glare.

The three of them are standing outside on the steps in the early morning sun. Marinette, for once, is on time, and she wishes she could do this more. Talk with her friends before class instead of barely make it into class and get another warning. She’s tired between deciding between Ladybug and Marinette.

Especially when there isn’t really a decision to make.

“I’m not saying it was perfect,” Alya scowls. “I’m saying you saying that it wasn’t _that good_ is shit. It’s just because it isn’t some indie film.”

“What? No.”

“Or foreign with subtitles.”

“ _Wonder Woman_ _is_ foreign,” he throws his arms up. “It’s American. We’re French.”

“Oh, please,” Alya waves her hand. “It was dubbed.”

“Nino,” Marinette tries to play diplomat. “Wasn’t there some part of it that you did like?”

He relents. “The characterization was good. So was the humor.”

“Also, she’s gorgeous.” Alya adds.

Marinette laughs. “Gal Gadot is a goddess.”

“Amen.”

The bell rings before Alya and Nino manage to get into another argument about _Wonder Woman_. She hesitates. “Is Adrien not here?” It unlike him to be late for anything that wasn’t excused, and Marinette has his schedule memorized. There were no sunrise shoots today.

“He’s probably already inside.”

 

 

Since five, he’s sat in the chair and stared at the wall. When Madame Bustier comes in, he tells her that he set his alarm early and ended up just coming in early to work on physics. It’s not entirely a lie. The theory of solids makes more sense than everything else. It’s real. It’s scientifically proven.

Rose and Juleka come in first. Rose smiles at him and asks him about his weekend, and Juleka offers a shy smile. He doesn’t know what he says, but it’s enough to satisfy her.

Max and Kim are next, and they go straight to their seats, arguing about something.

Then Marinette and Alya. Alya gives him the quick nod she always does on the way to climbing up to her seat, and Marinette gives him a fumbling _good morning_. He’s waited all morning for this, for her voice, because for some reason, he didn’t have a single video of Marinette on his phone. He had a few of Alya, a bunch of Nino, and more than he wants of Kim and Alix.

“You too,” he smiles.

She giggles, reddens, and hurries to her seat behind him.

It’s her voice. It lacks her usual boldness, the certainty, but it’s her. Marinette is Ladybug.

God, how could be so stupid? How did he not see it before?

“Man?” Nino’s next to him, and he didn’t even notice. “You good?”

“Uh, yeah,” he looks over. If he’s got anyone, it’s Nino. He can’t tell Nino his suspicions, but there is another question he can ask him. He lowers his voice to a whisper. “About Marinette. Is there… any reason she acts like she’s scared of me?”

Because now he’s thinking about it more, and Marinette is all Ladybug. She’s confidence. She’s ambition. Just not around him.

“Ohhhh,” Nino plays with his glasses. “I do. But it’s… kinda not my business, dude? Like, it’s something you need to talk to her about.”

His brow furrows. “She told you?”

Adrien supposes it makes sense. He’s the new kid, and Nino and Marinette might have known each other for years, for all he knows. They might be more in each other’s confidence. But he’s relieved anyway when Nino shakes his head.

“Nah, I just know. It’s kind of obvious.”

“It is?” He doesn’t think much of it. He used to be pretty shy too, as a kid, but now that only manifests in the quiet, good citizen demeanor of Adrien Agreste. It’s entirely gone in the wild, charming Chat Noir.

“Can you tell me one thing?”

“Sure. What?”

“It’s not that she hates me or something like that?” His stomach tightens. He doesn’t like the idea of Marinette, kind, gentle, Marinette hating him. He doesn’t think he could stand Ladybug hating him.

Nino barks out a laugh. “If only you knew.”

 

 

Nino finds her at her locker and drags her away from Marinette. It’s definitely the kind of conversation they should have alone, and besides, he wants to see her reaction untampered. Not that Alya’s ever been good at that.

“Dude, he finally _asked_ ,” he tells her.

“About what?” She asks.

“Why Marinette’s all red and can’t make words around him.”

“ _What_?” Gleeful, she spins around, and Nino enjoys the sight. “Finally. God, I have been waiting for this for ages. What did you say?”

“That he should talk to her.”

Alya offers him a crooked grin. “I kind of wish you just told him, but this is probably better.”

“Five euros says they get together by the end of the week.”

“Five says end of the month.”

“You’re on.”

They seal the bet with a heated, open-mouth kiss. Nino is almost okay if he loses. Not that he will, of course.

 

 

There’s a tap on her shoulder during lunch, and Marinette turns to find Adrien’s face. Before she can say anything, his mouth is close to her ear, and he’s talking: “hey, can we talk in private?”

She flushes, and her heart beats a little faster. “Um, y-yes, of course.” She’s so lost in bright green eyes and a nervous smile that she could almost ignore the chaos in the background. Or Chloe’s voice breaking through her stupor. But she can’t ignore the flutter of a black butterfly in the air, toward whoever it was Chloe insulted this time.

Her stomach sinks. “But, um, later,” she chirps. “Later is good. Because lunch is… digestion. And I need to run home. To get more cookies for more digestion.”

“Okay,” Adrien looks a little bewildered. There’s a scream, and his eyes widen. “That’s good because I’ve got to go, uh, shower.”

She chirps a “great” and runs out the door, glad he doesn’t question her. It’s a little strange that Adrien showers so much, but he guesses it must be a model thing. There are stranger qualities someone could have. She ducks into the locker room and opens her purse.

“Tikki, transform me!”

 

 

 

Chat Noir has beat her to the scene, and he’s already in the midst of battle with the akuma. She’s a tall, thin ballerina almost entirely pink – except for the whites of her eyes and the white ballerina bun held in place with a thin blue ribbon. “I am Prime Prima,” she yells. “And now everyone will see the value of an arts education.”

She kicks her feet, and a nearby student starts tap-dancing.

“Hello, bugaboo,” Chat Noir uses his staff to vault back to her. “Chloe mis- _stepped?_ ”

“Typically,” she rolls her eyes. She dodges a glowing pink beam. “Any idea where the Akuma is?”

Chat shakes his head. “It could be her tutu?”

“Maybe,” she winds up her yo-yo. “I’ll distract her, you evacuate the students. And get Chloe somewhere safe. The akuma is bound to come after her.”

“And let me guess – she wants our Miraculous?”

“How did you know, kitty?

“I know the dance, bugaboo.”

The akuma is in her ribbon, and soon all is right in the world. Chat stops her on the way out. “You aren’t going to ask me why I haven’t texted you?”

She shrugs. “I have to admit, I’m a little surprised, Chat.” She had gone to bed a few hours later, puzzled at the lack of texts. Or memes.

Chat grimaces. “I don’t want to make you upset, but I have to be honest with you.”

Ladybug stiffens. “Oh?”

“You were already on my contact list.”

Her earrings beep, and she knows she’s running out of time. But she’s frozen. “You know who I am?”

He hangs his head. “I’m sorry, my lady.”

Ladybug holds her breath. Her best friend as Marinette is Alya, but there aren’t words for how much she values Chat’s opinion. He’s more than a partner to her. He’s her closest friend. “Are you disappointed?”

“I could never be disappointed, Marinette.”

Her stomach falls. It’s more real when he says her name. The earring beeps again. “I… have to go. So do you.” When he reaches for her, eyes wide, she holds out a hand to stop him.

“Look, I just need time.”

 

 

The funny thing is that they’ve barely texted each other. There’s a total of one voicemail and seven texts between them. He’s looked at them so much that he’s memorized them by now.

 **Marinette Dupain-Cheng:** hi this is nino from marinettes phone my phone died r we still on for vid games tonight

 **Adrien Agreste:** Yeah ofc! 7 still good?

 **Marinette Dupain-Cheng:** yeah thanks man

So that barely counts. The only other time they text is to decide when to meet for a history project, and he initiates. He remembers the meeting too, and it’s pretty focused, Marinette hardly talking.

 **Adrien Agreste:** Hey, Marinette! What’s a good time to meet and talk about our history paper?

 **Marinette Dupain-Cheng:** eqiofnejwqnjeg

 **Marinette Dupain-Cheng:** Haha sorry that was Alya she surprised me!! How’s after-school in the library?

 **Adrien Agreste:** Sounds great!

He still has the voicemail because 1) he thinks it’s funny 2) it’s proof that he has friends. Real friends.

“Hi, Adrien! Um, Nino w-wanted to say – ”

“Are you free, man? We’re at the arcade on… What’s the address, Alya?”

“Give me back the phone, Nino!”

“Let me just text the address to him. Who calls anymore anyway?”

“Adrien does. My man’s old-fashioned.”

“My phone, Nino. _Hey_ , not Alya.”

“Hey, Adrien. Marinette wants to say – ”

[A brief struggle and a masculine laugh.]

“Bye, Adrien, I wanted to say nothing. Shut _up_ , Alya.”

Adrien doesn’t want to lose any of this. He knows they don’t talk a lot, but Marinette feels like a friend. Those smiles. The warmth. The leftover cookies. Ladybug is definitely a friend. The best friend he has.

Marinette meets him on the steps outside. Her hair is lit up in the sun, and her eyes are bright. “Did you still want to t-talk?”

“We’re friends, right?” He asks. He knows Nino said that she didn’t hate him, but he still needs to know.

“Of – of course,” she hastens to assure him. “I mean, if you think we are. I think we are. Like, not to be assuming anything, of c-course. But we are. We _are_.” The last two words are said too firmly for her to be lying to save his feelings. They’re too Ladybug.

He pulls out his phone and texts Marinette.

 **Adrien Agreste:** thanks for giving me your number, bugagoo

He watches as her eyes widen (a beautiful teal). Shock sweeping over her face. She glances up at him and then back to her phone. And turns around. And screams into her fist. And turns back around like it hasn’t happened, typing into her phone.

His phone beeps, and he looks down.

 **Marinette Dupain-Cheng:** you silly kitty

**Author's Note:**

> lmk what you think!!


End file.
